Tibetan Buddhists perform sacred dances in India

A novice Buddhist monk of the Drukpa Tibetan Buddhist lineage enters a temple for prayers during the annual festival of sacred dances at the Hemis monastery in Ladakh, northern India, Nov. 12, 2012.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Images made available to NBC News on Nov. 16.

Kevin Frayer / AP

Buddhist monks of the Drukpa Tibetan Buddhist lineage wait to perform a "bone dance" ritual during the annual festival of sacred dances at the Hemis monastery in Ladakh, northern India, Nov. 12. The sacred dances are a purification ritual that Tibetan Buddhists believe will rid the world of negative obstacles.

Kevin Frayer / AP

Buddhist monks of the Drukpa Tibetan Buddhist lineage perform a dance ritual during the annual festival of sacred dances at the Hemis monastery in Ladakh, northern India, Nov. 12. The sacred dances are a purification ritual that Tibetan Buddhists believe will rid the world of negative obstacles.

Kevin Frayer / AP

A Buddhist monk of the Drukpa Tibetan Buddhist lineage yawns as he sits with other monks during a break at an annual festival of sacred dances at the Hemis monastery in Ladakh, northern India, Nov. 11.